Einstein metrics, conformal curvature, and anti-holomorphic involutions (Q2231553)

Let \(M\) be a smooth connected compact \(n\)-manifold without boundary endowed with a Riemannian metric. Assuming the diffeomorphism group \(\mathrm{Diff}(M)\) acts on metrics via pullbacks, and the positive reals \(\mathbb{R}^+\) act by rescaling, then one calls \[ \mathcal{E}(M)=\{ \text{Einstein metrics on}\ M\}/(\mathrm{Diff}(M)\times \mathbb{R}^+) \] the Einstein moduli space. If \(M\) is 4-dimensional manifold it makes sense to consider also the restricted moduli space \[ \mathcal{E}_{\det}(M)=\{ \text{Einstein metrics on } M \text{ with } \det(W^+)>0 \} /(\mathrm{Diff}(M)\times \mathbb{R}^+), \] where \(W^+\) is the self-dual Weyl curvature tensor. Certain specific 4-manifolds whose Einstein moduli space \(\mathcal{E}(M)\) is explicitly known and connected motivates the author for the intensive study of Einstein moduli spaces in dimension four. He proves there are exactly 15 diffeotypes of compact oriented 4-manifolds \(M\) that carry Einstein metrics \(h\) with \(\det(W^+)>0\) everywhere. For each such manifold, the restricted moduli space \(\mathcal{E}_{\det}(M)\) of these special Einstein metrics is connected, and exactly sweeps out a single connected component of the Einstein moduli space \(\mathcal{E}(M)\). Necessary and sufficient conditions for existence of such an Einstein metric \(h\) are established. Whenever such an Einstein metric \(h\) exists, the universal cover \((\tilde{M},\tilde{h})\) of \((M,h)\) is necessarily isometric to a del Pezzo surface, equipped with a Kähler-Einstein metric, in such a manner that the non-trivial deck transformation becomes a free anti-holomorphic involution. The author generalizes these results in various ways and emphasizes some associated open problems.